Social Media: The Outside Looking In

Everyone who would like to advance in their career or business should have a social media presence. However, if someone were to look into your social media pages, what would they see? If you really mean business, you would be concerned about your profile’s displays. From the outside looking in, one can see how engaged you are in the online community and community at large.

For example, if your business is a restaurant, people should perceive your caliber of food and quality of service as excellent. Your business should display an appealing image. An investor should see that you are focused on your target market and responsible with your brand. The level of consistency of what you have to offer should always be excellent.

If someone says they do not understand how to use social media, this is not a problem. You can collaborate with someone more knowledgeable to look at the profiles in your professional network and expand from there. Additionally, as the person who is learning, you should consider:

What is it that I want other people to see that is different about me, my product or service?

What I am engaged in?

Do I want people to know that I keep up with news headlines?

What is going on in my field/industry?

How do I want to display my value system (or religious affiliation, if at all)?

Do I want the online community to know that I love working with children?

Whatever your goal is, having and connecting via social media can be a win-win for all involved. Everyone can benefit from the communication and interaction even if it is just for positive reinforcement and networking.